The Official Blog of the Handcrafted Soap & Cosmetics Guild

Tag: tools

Have you ever found yourself cursing over unevenly cut soap samples? Ingenious soapmaker member Leanne Laboy has just the trick. Looking for a way to manage the different soap weights she needed to cut, inspiration struck her from the shelves of a kitchen store.

Leanne found that a wire cutter used to shave off slices of butter “can cut straight down a standing bar of soap like a mini tank” and is the “perfect size for customers to try”. This particular butter cutting device has wires 0.6 cm wide and will cut samples approximately 1/3 to 1/2 oz (8-14 grams) in weight (a little lighter, of course, after a cure). It’s also less than $10 and fairly compact, making this an invaluable tool to add to your arsenal. Check out this GIF of the cutter in action:

After sharing this tip, we sat down to find out a little bit more about Leanne. Having stumbled into soapmaking well over a decade ago as a crazy, last-ditch attempt to treat severe dermatitis, she quickly fell in love with the process. Leanne relates, “I was enjoying having normal skin, wonderful smelling soaps and not just DOVE, and having cuticles again!”

She never intended to go into business, but “I started selling when my stash reached about 700 bars and my husband told me, ‘Leanne, we got a little problem here’”.

Today, she offers a wide range of skin-friendly treats including lotion sticks, lip balms, soaps (for vegans, sensitive skin, shaving, and much more) as well as accoutrements like travel-friendly crocheted soap savers and handcrafted soap dishes through Leanne’s Homemade Natural Soap. Find out about her upcoming craft fairs and make special requests through her facebook page.

Thanks for sharing this awesome tip, Leanne! Your turn: what kitchen item have you appropriated for soapmaking?